Fewer departments? Journal fit + AcWriMo
Welcome to November. This week, I have a debate about the future of humanities departments, some practical advice on choosing a journal for your article, and a first look at something I'm putting together for us later this month.
01 · In the field: Can fewer departments protect the humanities?
In an essay published on 26 October, musicologist Ian Pace argues that concentrating scholarly provision in fewer departments could help sustain the humanities, rather than spreading students and resources thinly across many institutions.
His starting point is music, where he distinguishes the historical, analytical and critical study of the subject from vocational training for creative work, arguing that growth in one does not necessarily protect the other. He extends the argument to other humanities subjects and proposes regional planning, collaboration and shared teaching, alongside measures to preserve access.
This is a proposal for debate, not an announced policy, and Pace explicitly acknowledges that small student cohorts alone do not establish that a department is financially unviable.
For those of us in the humanities and social sciences, the question worth taking into a departmental discussion is what, exactly, a restructuring would preserve. I would ask about the intellectual work, specialist teaching and opportunities for students that would remain, as well as who could realistically access them. Those questions give us something more specific to discuss than whether fewer departments would automatically be better or worse.
Source: timeshighereducation
02 · On the craft: Check the journal before you reshape the paper
When you're deciding where to submit an article, I would look beyond whether the journal publishes work on your topic. The next question is whether it publishes the kind of contribution you're making.
Two journals might both publish articles about museums, for example. But one might be interested in a paper that develops an anthropological argument through ethnographic material, while another might expect the paper to offer something directly useful for museum practice. You could be writing about the same institution and still need to explain the significance of your research quite differently.
Before rewriting your introduction for a particular journal, choose three recent research articles that seem reasonably close to your work. Read their introductions and conclusions together. What problem does each article set up? What does it say its contribution is? Then look at how the authors use their material to support that contribution.
I'm not suggesting that you copy their structure or add citations simply because those authors have published there. The point is to give yourself a more concrete basis for deciding whether your paper belongs in that journal.
If the fit looks promising, write a short note to yourself explaining why. Name the discussion your article contributes to and what those readers would gain from it. Then identify what your introduction needs to explain more clearly for that audience.
If you find yourself having to promise a different kind of paper, pause before making those changes. You may need a different journal, rather than another rewrite. That is a useful decision to make before you've spent a week changing the framing.
Try this week
Take one journal on your shortlist and three recent articles from it. Write a short “why this journal” note, followed by one change your paper would need for its readers. If you cannot explain the fit without changing your central argument, compare a second journal before you begin revising.
03 · Coming in late November: AcWriMo x EMERGE Scholars week
I'm putting together an AcWriMo x EMERGE Scholars week for late November, with write-ins, a book club and workshops. I'm looking forward to bringing these different ways of spending time with our writing together.
You might have an article you want to move forward before the end of the year, a chapter that needs attention, or a project you'd like to return to. I'd love for this week to be an opportunity to bring that work along and spend some time with other academics who are writing too.
There isn't a registration link to share just yet. I'll share the programme and joining details this week, so for now, keep an eye on the next email I'll send.
I'd love to have you with us. And if a colleague comes to mind who might enjoy the week, feel free to pass this email on so they can sign up to the newsletter and get all the information they need soon.
Warmly,
Melanie
